Sign – symbol – decoration: the relationship of image and text in 16th –17th century Hungarian calendars

Research reveals that 16th–17th century Hungarian calendars and popular works, such as penny books and manuscript song collections, exhibit complex relationships between image and text, blending late Renaissance and Baroque influences. The study highlights non-traditional figures like mermaids/sirens in the 1578 calendar (Kolozsvár-Cluj), which later appeared on 18th-century Calvinist church furniture and ceiling panels in Hungary. Additionally, it analyzes title pages from Upper Hungary calendars (e.g., Calendarium Tyrnaviense) and those by David Frölich (Wrocław, 1623–1646), demonstrating how cultural topoi and archetypes evolved across time and space. The findings underscore the dynamic interplay between visual symbolism and textual content in these works.

Dukkon, Á. (2017). Sign – symbol – decoration: the relationship of image and text in 16th –17th century Hungarian calendars. Hungarian Studies, 31(1), 95–112. https://doi.org/10.1556/044.2017.31.1.7